The Stuff of Legend
by kaynibbler16
Summary: Deep within a forest lived a very lonely man. (Rose/Unspecified Doctor)


**A/N**: Just a little ficlet. Doctor and Rose. It can be any incarnation you want. See any mistakes, let me know. Feedback is wonderful. Enjoy! :)

**Disclaimer**:I do not own Doctor Who or any of its characters.

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It was said that deep within the Forest of Gallifrey, among the ancient trees and abandoned ruins, lived a lonely man. The man was sad because all of his people had perished in a devastating battle, leaving only him behind.

There was no one left; he was all alone.

Legend said that the man was immortal, forever burdened with the loss of his people, but it also said that he spent his days tending to an extraordinary garden of flowers.

It was a garden like no other, flowers and plants of all kinds flourished there. Some flowers were so magnificent that it was believed they were not of this world. It would certainly have been a splendid sight to behold.

Among the flowers there was one in particular that the lonely man tended to frequently; a pink and yellow rose.

The rose was so precious to the man that he always made sure it was taken care of and protected. He loved this rose so much that it was said that he whispered his secrets to it every night; stories of other worlds and lives not yet lived.

Unbeknownst to the man, the rose listened. Every new story the man told, the fuller the flower bloomed.

Every night the man told his flower his tales of adventure and wonder and every night, the flower listened.

But, as many legends tell, not all stories have a happy ending.

One evening, after telling his flower of a world covered in red grass and silver trees, the man went to sleep, however, that night a terrible frost struck the forest.

Winter had come early that year.

When the man awoke the next morning, he discovered that the frost had killed off most of his garden.

As he made his way through to his roses, he found that his precious pink and yellow rose had perished in the frost.

The lonely man lamented the loss of his flower, for he could not save his little rose.

He grew sadder as the days passed and the forest grew darker and more dangerous as time went on.

One day, the man left to gather food in the forest when he came upon a wolf. The wolf was badly injured and the man, even though he was still devastated over the loss of his rose, took pity on the poor creature.

Day by day, he nursed the wolf back to health and on the final day, the wolf spoke to him.

The wolf claimed to be the Bad Wolf, a creature with mysterious abilities that not even the man could fully understand. The Bad Wolf said that since the man helped it recover from its wounds, it would grant him his hearts' greatest desire.

The man did not believe the creature at first, but saw no harm in at least trying. He asked the creature if it could bring back his pink and yellow flower.

The creature said that it could not bring back the flower as it was, but it might be able to give the flower a new vessel. The man just wished that the flower could be happy, even if it meant without him.

The Bad Wolf understood the man's desire and granted his request, but on one condition.

Since his request was so difficult to grant for the wolf, to bring back his pink and yellow flower, it would come at a cost. The man must give up his immortal life and live the remainder of his days as a mortal man.

The lonely man agreed without hesitation.

The Bad Wolf moved the stars and commanded time to return the flower to the world as something new.

When the deed was done, a girl with pink skin and yellow hair stood before the no longer immortal man.

The man told the girl that he would give her whatever she desired, so long as she was happy. The girl said that there were only three requests she had. He must rebuild his garden again, to restore balance back to the forest. Next, he must tell her a story every night before she went to sleep so that she may dream of far off worlds and glittering stars. And last, he must spend the rest of his life with her so that she may tend to him and bring him happiness, just as he did for her.

The man and his flower lived and loved each other for the rest of their mortal lives together in the forest and it was said that the Bad Wolf had been so moved by the couple's joy that it wrote their names in the stars.

And thus, they became the stuff of legend.


End file.
